Archives for 2010

Pink My Profile and Right@Home Donates $1

Pink Facebook Pic

Have you wondered what’s up with all the pink Facebook pages lately?  Well, Right@Home is to blame! : )  When you Pink My Profile on Facebook, Right@Home will donate $1.00 to The Breast Cancer Research Foundation (up to $100,000).  It’s optional to change your pink picture as your profile picture after you’re done but what a great way to announce Rigth@Home’s donation and help make that $100,0000 proposed donation a reality.

Help Pepperidge Farm Donate to Susan G. Komen

Milano_Moment

I am excited to share about Pepperidge Farm’s donation incentive supporting Susan G. Komen for the Cure during the month of October.  Whenever someone posts a personal Milano Moment on Milano’s Facebook Page in October, Pepperidge Farm will donate $.50 per Moment up to $50,000.  You can click here to read about one of my favorite Milano Moments.

I’m hoping to share this message with you in hopes of maxing out Pepperidge Farm’s donation to Susan G. Komen for the Cure.  This is yet another way to give a free donation!

Disclosure: I was not compensated for this post. In posting this I am entered to win a small prize thanks to One2One. The opinions expressed are exclusively my own.

The Greatest Gift

Tonight was a Wednesday that wasn’t very different from any other Wednesday.  We went to church and on the way home we stopped by Walmart for a few things we needed.  We hurried around the store trying to remember what ingredients we were missing from the recipe we were making on Friday.  It was a slow night at Walmart, I kind of like going at night because you can actually walk around without saying excuse me every few minutes.  My husband and I were in the last isle jokingly debating between each other over whose favorite pizza was better when we saw one store employee run past us.  He wasn’t just jogging, it was a full out sprint!  I thought to myself “Clean up on isle three!”  Then I noticed that someone was crying, it had probably been there for a few minutes but you know how noisy Walmart can be, in the back of my head I just assumed it was a child crying over which cereal they wanted.  I mentioned my concern to my husband and he agreed that something was wrong.

As we rounded the corner we saw two ladies crying loudly over top of another lady who was lying down shaking.  The lady on the ground was someone who I remember seeing a few moments earlier in the cheese section, the section she was still in.  I remember her specifically because she was standing still with a very long cane pointed forward, the cane was so long that I wondered if it may have been a cane for a blind person but then I noticed she wasn’t blind.  Then I my eyes were fixed on the intricate carvings on the  cane.  My grandpa has several beautiful wooden canes and every time I see one I think of him.

I don’t know what happened to that lady but I’ve prayed for her and her family and hope that she’s okay now.  I hated leaving Walmart tonight until I knew she was okay but I felt strange just standing around.  I was comforted to see an ambulance pull up as we were leaving.

I still feel a little weird,  similar to the feeling on 9/11 but on a smaller scale.  It seems the world has slowed down temporarily.  At Walmart I found that I was no longer hungry, I no longer cared about the things on my list, I no longer felt the weight of the burdens I had been carrying all day, nothing else mattered.  All I could think about was the brevity of life and the “hereafter.”  You may have noticed that I’ve talked about God in a few posts and I have Bible verse on my site but do you know what I really believe?  I believe that there is a literal heaven and hell that is waiting for us all and no amount of good works can earn you a spot in heaven.  I believe that we are all sinners and destined for Hell in need of a savior.  I believe that God, creator and designer of this universe, sent His son, His perfect son to Earth to be our sacrifice.  We deserve Hell but God was gracious enough to send His only son, Jesus, to come and die in our place.  Three days after Jesus was crucified He was raised from the dead defeating both sin and death!  We now have a way from Hell to Heaven if we will turn from our sin and trust in Jesus’ work on the cross to save us.  If we do that God will impart Jesus Christ’s righteousness on our behalf and we are freely given eternal life with Him in Heaven!  That is the best freebie ever!

I don’t know why but I really felt the need to share this and I hope each and everyone of you reading this will think about where you would go tonight if you died?  Would you immediately be in Heaven in the presence of God or in Hell?

In summary:

-All have sinned and came short of perfection. Romans 3:10-12

-For the wages (payment) of sin is death but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord. Romans 6:23

-By placing our faith in Jesus’ finished work on the cross we can be saved. Romans 5:1-2, Romans 3:23-24, John 3:16-17

If anyone ever has any questions regarding God or salvation please feel free to comment or email me because I would love to discuss this truth with you!  I mean that from the bottom of my heart.

Help Frigidaire Donate $1 to Save the Children *Free*

Jennifer GarnerThis Holiday season, Frigidaire and Jennifer Garner are asking everyone to set a place at the “virtual kids’ table” for a child in need.  Starting today at MakeTimeforChange.com Frigidaire will donate $1 to support Save the Children. It is an effort to ensure that kids have access to healthy foods this holiday season (and all year long).

About Save the Children (from their website):

“Save the Children is the leading independent organization creating lasting change in the lives of children in need in the United States and around the world. Recognized for our commitment to accountability, innovation and collaboration, our work takes us into the heart of communities, where we help children and families help themselves. We work with other organizations, governments, non-profits and a variety of local partners while maintaining our own independence without political agenda or religious orientation.

When disaster strikes around the world, Save the Children is there to save lives with food, medical care and education and remains to help communities rebuild through long-term recovery programs. As quickly and as effectively as Save the Children responds to tsunamis and civil conflict, it works to resolve the ongoing struggles children face every day — poverty, hunger, illiteracy and disease — and replaces them with hope for the future.”

You and I can help by visiting MakeTimeforChange.com and setting a place at the virtual kids’ table, and Frigidaire will donate $1 to support Save the Children’s work!  This is another Free way to help a worthy cause!

Disclosure: I was not compensated for this post. In posting this I am entered to win a prize as part of the Frigidaire program thanks to MomSelect. The opinions expressed are exclusively my own.

Growing Tree Toys: Win up to $1,000 in Toys

I am excited to share Growing Tree Toy’s latest contest, Win your Wish List contest!  Anyone who creates or edits a wish list at GrowingTreeToys.com from Oct. 1-31, 2010 is eligible to win – up to $1,000 in toys!  Visit Growing Tree Toys and register or log in to begin your wish list and be automatically entered to win!

Win-it-Wednesday 10/6

I love winning giveaways, and I love hosting giveaways! Leave your link below  to lead everyone to the best giveaways on the blogosphere!

(Be sure to include contest ending date in your link: ex:Beauty4Moms $25 Poppy Clementine Gift Card 10/20)

Persnickety Poppy Clementine

Free Bottle of Advil *First 500,000*

Advil Free Bottle

Get a free bottle of Advil 24-count tablets or 20-count liqui-gels via a mailed coupon.  Hurry this is only available for the first 500,000 people who register.  Click on the green “Sign Up Now” button to request your coupon.  Allow 1-3 weeks for delivery.

High Fructose Corn Syrup – The Real Deal

I want to discuss an issue that has many people stirred up nowadays. I know there are many issues that moms will always disagree on; to vaccinate or not, breast feeding vs. bottle feeding, home school vs. public school, and most recently – the debate over High Fructose Corn Syrup.  I just want to lay out the facts and let moms decide for themselves.

I know that nutrition is important and making healthy, nutritious meals is a priority for me.  To be honest, I have never really checked the contents of my food to see if it has high fructose corn syrup or not.  Until recently I never thought it was so bad.  Then I kept hearing from every direction the severe dangers of feeding it to my family and I kind of panicked.  When I was contacted by Mom Central to learn the facts of high fructose corn syrup I jumped at the offer.  I thought they could give me the facts and pointers on how to avoid it totally…but I was wrong.  Here’s the surprising facts:

Corn Refiners Association

High Fructose Corn Syrup vs. Sucrose (Table Sugar).
HFCS and Sucrose both contain half fructose and half glucose!  The only difference is the chemical bond that is between the fructose and glucose in the sucrose.  The bond doesn’t matter at all in the way either one is digested, since the bond breaks once the sucrose has entered the small intestine.  They are digested in exactly the same way, and so they have the exact same effect on obesity.

Sugar Stacks

High Fructose Corn Syrup has many uses.
(I think this is a cool fact!)  There are two kinds of high fructose corn syrup – one that has 42% fructose and one has 55% fructose.  The 42% formulation is actually less sweet than sugar.  This type of HFCS is used in foods to produce a brown color, to retain moisture to delay staling, for microbial stability, helps build structure, provides texture, adjusts freezing points.

High Fructose Corn Syrup is what?
The name HFCS is a bit confusing so just think of it as corn sugar.  Table sugar comes from sugar cane or sugar beets and HFCS comes from corn.  Just like in nature, most all the common sweeteners are a mix of fructose and glucose. Most fruits and nuts fall into the 50% fructose/50% glucose range.

In conclusion, sucrose and HFCS are the same from a metabolic and nutritional stand point.  The American Medical Association says there is nothing that links HFCS to obesity in humans.  Many of the studies done lately give misinformation because HFCS is not being compared to sucrose and they are comparing pure fructose to pure glucose at high levels.

It’s my opinion that obesity is rising because we eat more of everything!  With all things in life, balance is the key.  Whether your sweetner is sugar, HFCS, honey, or another option remember to use it in moderation.

I hope this post was at least a little helpful.  As women, it’s our privilege to provide healthy meals for our family and at times that means making tough decisions.  I hope that I’ve been able to provide you with enough information to make an informed decision.  To research this further visit SugarStacks.com & SweetSurprise.com.

Disclosure: “I wrote this review while participating in a blog tour campaign by Mom Central on behalf of the Corn Refiners Association. I received a gift certificate to thank me for taking the time to participate.”

Host a Hershey’s Cookie Exchange Party ($50 value free)

Hersheys Cookie Exchange

I am very excited to share this opportunity with you!  Right now you can apply to host a Hershey’s Cookie Exchange Party and you’ll get everything (about $50 value) that you’ll need to host this cookie exchange party in December.  Only 1,000 hosts will be chosen.  Application opens on October 4, 2010 and ends at 11:59:59 pm EST on November 15, 2010.

Each Host will receive a Party Pack which includes:

  • One Hershey’s Holiday Apron for the Host, Approximate Retail Value $11;
  • Three packages of Hershey’s kisses chocolates, One container of Hershey’s cocoa and One box of Pillsbury Sugar Cookies Mix, ARV $18;
  • Fifteen Hershey’s bakery boxes for guests to carry their favorite cookies home, ARV $19;
  • Fifteen Hershey’s Recipe Books. The featured Hershey’s recipes include: Kisses Cocoa Cookies, Peanut Butter Blossoms, Cocoa Crinkle Cookies, Chocolate Dipped Toffee Bits Cookies, Kisses Candy Cane Blossoms, and Kisses Macaroon Cookies, ARV $1.50.

Free ScotchBlue Painter’s Tape on Facebook

ScotchBlue with Edge-Guard

Get a free sample of ScotchBlue Painter’s Tape with edge-lock when you “Like” The ScotchBlue Facebook page.   Once you “Like” them fill out the form on your “Get the Edge” tab to receive your sample.